Grins and Giggles
by Fallen Ark Angel
Summary: Because Laxus does love his demon. It just took him a bit to realize it. - One-shot.


Grins and Giggles

"This is nice," Laxus told Mirajane. "Really nice."

She had to concur. For the first time in their tentative ten month relationship, Mirajane had been able to get some time off from the hall that just so happened to coincide perfectly with when Laxus was taking a time away from jobs and training and such. She knew of this in advance, as they'd planned it, but had been under the impression that the two of them would be hanging around Magnolia together and, maybe, spend part of the time cleaning out the attic in the tiny house she owned with her brother and sister.

"It's a big project," she'd told Laxus.

"Big? You guys have, like, literally the tiniest house in the world."

"Just come over and help, dragon. It'll only take one of our days together. And if we knock it out first, the we got the rest of the week to spend together."

Only, at that time, Mira had no idea that Laxus was conspiring behind her back and had no intention of ever cleaning out that nasty attic. Nope. He was whisking Mirajane away on their first official vacation as a couple. Really, she should have been suspecting it.

But still, he'd promised to get her attic cleaned up, so he sent over the Thunder Legion to help out her dorky siblings.

"And no sneaking off to hookup with Elfman, Ever," he'd decreed, more for Bickslow's amusement as it made the seith cackle with laughter. Evergreen? Not so much.

Freed, however, had only saluted and promised to have that attic in tiptop shape when he returned. Laxus thought about telling him it wasn't that serious and that really the only point behind it was to keep her siblings occupied and from calling them on the communication lacrima constantly (and the reverse for the Thunder Legion), but whatever. If the demon got a clean attic out of it, who was he to complain?

And boy was Mirajane surprised when Laxus showed up that first day, not with the intention of cleaning, but rather with two train tickets, a bag,and the instructions that she'd better pack light; they would be on the beach.

It almost made the train bearable for the slayer, listening to Mirajane sing his praises as they bustled along in it, him having to hold down his lunch, her just mostly holding him. Any part of him really from his hand to his arm to leaning against him. Mira was really thrilled by the trip and even more so impressed by him.

Laxus couldn't wait to get to the hotel to cash in on that.

It was, of course, just as sweet and great as he'd been expecting. In fact, they had to end up ordering up to the room because Laxus just wasn't letting her leave. He promised to take her out to a nice dinner the next night, but Mira only waved him off.

"It's fine, dragon," she said as they laid in the big bed, her feeding him bits of steak from the plate they were sharing (really it was his and she'd already finished hers, but why get into that). "This is nice. You want more?"

He nodded before opening his mouth wide. Always. He was a greedy little dragon, but still a keeper.

Mira was in love with the tub that night for some reason and insisted that they take a bath together. They'd never done that and, as it turned out to literally just bathing together, he wasn't too keen on doing it again. Shower? Fine. Bath? No. Gross. Ew.

But Mirajane enjoyed it and, as he'd slowly learned, that was all that mattered.

Laxus ordered them up some nice wine to finish the evening and then snuggled with the demon. A lot. Anything to keep her in the room. She wanted to go down the beach, even though it was the middle of the night.

"Just to look around," she'd insisted, but that sounded like a hassle to Laxus. No, he'd much rather just kiss and cuddle with her back up in the room, thanks.

He somehow managed to get her to drift off somewhere between him mumbling stuff in her ear and gently stroking her stomach. Then he got to shift back into his part of the nice, big bed, read a bit of a novel he brought, and then drift off himself.

Until the next morning when he woke up to find Mirajane sleeping on his chest and, well, that was where the nice comment came in. Because it was nice. Even the demon thought so.

"Mmmm," she'd sighed after he said that. Resting against his chest, she stroked gently at his tribal tattoo while also breathing deeply. "I feel lazy."

"Good," He didn't even move. Just continued to recline there. "Be lazy. You deserve it."

Nuzzling her head into him, she said, "I can't believe you tricked me."

"Why can't you? I'm a mastermind, woman. I can trick anyone."

Mira only grinned up at him. "It was a nice surprise though."

"Damn straight," he agreed. "Only the best for my demon. And you just wait. You thought this was good? I'm no inept idiot; I know when our anniversary is. Do you?"

That was more of a test the water question for Laxus. He wasn't really clear on when they officially started dating or if an anniversary just meant when they had their first date. If Mira didn't know either and revealed it to him then, great. If not, he always had insider information, i.e. Evergreen.

And Lisanna. That little snake. She told him everything about her sister that he asked. That's how he knew what kinda flowers to send and what sorta chocolate she liked best. Yeah, Lisanna was pretty great. For a brat that crashed their dates from time to time.

She was a keeper though.

Especially since it had been her that told him about Mira loving the beach so much. He'd always assumed as she just seemed like the type, but to know for certain was nice. And Lisanna told him that Mira was wondering if they'd ever go away together, so what better surprise, huh?

"You're pretty good to have around, kid," Laxus had complimented Lisanna, even giving her a pat on the head and a jewel for her trouble.

"I'm not a kid," she complained, though she quickly pocketed that jewel and walked away from his table at the hall.

"Oh yeah? What are you gonna do with your jewel?"

"Natsu, Happy, and I were going to get ice cream anyways so-"

"Case closed."

"Shut it, Laxus."

Yeah, Lisanna was a good man to have on the inside. Err, woman. Err, kid. Whatever.

Only, even she couldn't prepare him for the next step of their relationship. Mainly because if she had known and did tell him what Mira was going to accidentally spring on him that morning, well, that would be a big conflict of the sister code and would have cost a hundred jewels.

At least.

Really, it depended on how Lisanna was feeling about Mira at the moment. If she'd just made her work an extra shift, that info was coming out free of charge.

As it was though, Laxus had never known to ask such a thing and Lisanna wouldn't know to give it up without prompting, leading Mira to hand out her own little surprise to Laxus as they laid around in bed.

It happened when just laying there got too boring (not to mention finding out that Mira did have an anniversary date in mind) and tedious to the slayer and he tried to initiate more. He'd shifted the giggling Mirajane onto her back and was slipping her back out of the shirt she'd put on sometime that night, being sure to rub against her at every turn. Laxus knew the drill; before he got to feel good, he had to make sure his demon did.

"Dragon," she giggled as he kissed down her stomach.

"Wha'?" he breathed against it, grinning up at her. "Demon?"

She was only laughing though and he grinned, lifting up some, so that he could get back up there and kiss her, but Mira was reaching out to cup his cheek at the same time and she about poked him in the eye. That was even funnier to them for some reason and he wasn't sure if they were still feeling the affects of their late night wine or if they were just that ecstatic to finally be free and together and happy.

Laxus was really happy.

"I love you."

And then Mirajane went and did that.

"What?" He pulled back some more, away from her, so that he could stare at her. Mira's giggles fell to silence too as she only stared back, pale face slowly heating up.

"I-I didn't-"

"You love me?"

"Laxus-"

That about floored him, but he was able to keep his composer. He knew that if he didn't, it would completely ruin that whole damn trip and, well, he couldn't have that, could he?

"That's good." He moved to start back on his descent down her stomach. "'cause I love you too."

It was just a quick fix, of course, as his heart was still racing about as fast as his mind about that and he could tell Mira wasn't really into what they were doing. Eventually she disappeared off into the bathroom alone and he just laid in bed, thinking.

The problem was a lot more complicated, of course, than Mirajane just saying that to him. It was the implication. Okay, so Mirajane loved him. It was kinda of like the first time that she called him her boyfriend and she thought he'd freak out. And he did, internally, but eventually he was able to get used to it.

Maybe the situations were completely similar. He just had to let her call him that a few more times and then, once he was used to it, things would get better.

Problem solved.

Right?

Ugh.

He'd been a boyfriend before Mira. Maybe not a good one, but he had. Laxus, however, hadn't loved someone before.

Fine, if he had to admit it and the man was, like, on his deathbed or something, he loved Gramps. And at one time, he'd loved Ivan. And the entity of Fairy Tail. And, alright, damn, the Thunder Legion.

But a woman?

The thought alone made his stomach clinch. It seemed like every step he and Mira were taking felt more and more real. Ten months for them really wasn't that long when one thought about it. He was constantly away and she was working up at the bar and, really, did the two know one enough well enough to-

Damn it. He'd known Mira since she was a teenager. Any other woman, fine, that might work, but not her. He did know her. On many different levels and from multiple points of view. He thought that she was kind and sweet and, sometimes, a little dimwitted, but ultimately a useful person to have on your side in times of attack. He also thought that she was great when she waited up late for him at his apartment to get home from training because she'd just been thinking about him and wanted to spend time together. Or when she'd make him dinner and stop by just to give it to him because she had to get back to work. And, well, she was pretty great in bed to boot. Then there was the way she'd massage his shoulders when he was tense or wasn't squeamish about blood and sweat or getting those two things out of his clothing.

She was just an awesome person. A stellar girlfriend, really. Those things alone had helped him decide that yes, he was fine with being her boyfriend.

But did they mean that he loved her?

"Are you gonna come out to breakfast with me? Dragon?"

Mira was out of the bathroom then, all dressed and ready for the day, it seemed. He was still laying there, nude (he rarely felt bashful around her), and only stared.

"Uh, yeah." Pushing out of bed, he headed to the bathroom. "Give me a minute, huh?"

"Of course, Lax."

He pressed a kiss to her head as they passed one another, but neither seemed to be too calmed by that. Mira only went over to her bag and Laxus headed into the bathroom.

Mira felt like an idiot, out there in the room. She knew as it was slipping out that her confession of love wouldn't sit well with the man. She'd dated before. A lot. She'd had boyfriends before. Quite a few. And there were the type that were into love and ones that weren't. Laxus wasn't. She could tell from a mile away he wouldn't be.

So why did she say that?

Because the whole thing just felt so...romantic. Laxus was a romantic, in some ways. He really liked doing things for her, surprising her, taking her fancy places. But that was as far down that road as he ever went. Love had never been mentioned and she had a feeling that their relationship would have been far better off without it.

Now she'd ruined the whole week. Possibly even the rest of their time together. Dating in the guild was never something she liked even the concept of and now she had to go and date the Master's grandson and ruin it with him before even a year out.

Great. Just great.

The worst part was, Mira really did love Laxus. She knew that it was stupid, the whole thing. What did her saying the word love have to do with what they meant to one another? If she felt that and kept it quiet, why would that be any better? Laxus wasn't stupid. He had to understand that. She didn't just suddenly love him or feel that way. The word changed nothing.

But if that was true, then why did she feel like it had?

"Demon, you ready?"

Anything to get out of that room.

She and Laxus went out to eat a light breakfast before just roaming around the city for a bit. It was really nice. Mira was able to put things out of her mind as Laxus took her shopping if only for a bit. They didn't really talk about it again until they went back to the hotel, to drop the things she'd bought off and change into their swimsuits.

"I really do like the beach," she was telling him as he dug a pair of trunks out of his bag. "Did you know that?"

He wasn't really listening though. Being back in the room jumbled his thoughts and, without shopping to distract them, he was fearful they'd go back to being awkward. "Uh-huh."

"Well, of course you did. You seem to always know everything."

Mirajane loved him. Really. Hmmm. "Uh-huh."

"Red suit or blue suit, Lax? Red? I like it the best too."

Did he love her? He wasn't too sure. It wasn't like he _didin't_ , but… "Uh-huh."

"I think it just fits me best. Don't you?"

It was just a lot to take in, really. She kinda just sprung it on him. And, after all, did love count when you're about to have sex? He was pretty sure that was one of those unwritten rules that no, it didn't. "Uh-huh."

"Mmmm." Mira stripped down right there in the middle of the room to change. Laxus fought his instincts and didn't turn to glance over. "Do you like the beach?"

Still, even if that was true, he felt no better about it. It wasn't fair to Mirajane to let her love him without at least attempting to love her back. But what did it take to love someone? "Uh-huh."

"That's good. That we like the same thing. I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't only like the beach."

He felt like he already did all the things that someone in love with do. He surprised her and took her places, he stayed up late at night listening to her tell him things, his chest swelled and hurt when he thought about her, he didn't even want to date other women anymore. The list could go on, really, but did it need to? "Uh-huh."

"We could go out and do other things. Like, I like to hike and fish and ooh, I love cabins. You think one day we can go to one?"

That was all that needed to be factored in, right? He liked Mira. A lot. She loved him. He wasn't sure if he did or not. But all the things that love would probably be composed of if he did feel it was there. So what did that mean? "Uh-huh."

"This other guy that I was with, he took me to one during the winter and we- Oops. I didn't mean to mention that."

That he was...that he… Ugh. Even thinking it made him sick. "Uh-huh."

"Sorry. It was a long time ago. But it really was nice."

But wasn't that part of love? You had to just get passed that, right? It hadn't felt good to be a boyfriend at first either, but now he was so used to it that it wasn't even a thought. He was Mirajane Strauss' boyfriend. And he wanted to stay that. "Uh-huh."

"I love this trip too though, Lax. Really. This is a great. That you were able to surprise me."

And now he loved her. He just loved her. "Uh-huh."

"I mean-"

"Demon." And now he had to tell her. For real.

"Y-Yes?"

He was standing there, finally in his trunks, his other clothes shed and lying in a pile around him. Heading over to her even though she was only in her bottoms, top hanging from one hand, Laxus moved to grab her cheeks in both hands, staring down into her blue eyes, managing to not just ogle at her breasts the entire time.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "I love you too."

"L-Laxus-"

"I do." He even grinned at her. "I've never thought about it before, but this has to be what it is. Right?"

"You don't have to placate me," she complained. "Really. It was a mistake. I shouldn't have-"

"I wasn't a mistake." Leaning down, he nuzzled his head against hers. "Because I love you. And you love me. And that's okay. What difference does it make now, huh? That you said it or that I said it? I still feel just the same as I have for the past few months. You're my demon. What more needs to be said?"

For a moment, they just stared at one another. And then she was giggling again and he was giving her his shit eating grin, the one that only she got because she was special. Why wasn't he just able to say that from the start?

"You're so good for me." He let go of her cheeks and moved to gently pry her swim top from her hands and toss it away before working on those pesky bottoms. "Beach later. Huh?"

Mirajane wiggled out of them for him. "Beach later."

"Mmmm." He lifted her up then, carrying her back over to bed. "My silly demon. Silly little baby demon. You think that I don't love you? Or care about you? Huh?"

"i knew," she giggled as they fell into the mattress, her keeping her arms tight around him. "I also knew it'd take you a bit to realize it."

"You know me too well, demon."

"I know I do, dragon."

Again with the grin and the giggles. Huh. They were quite a match. He couldn't imagine anyone better.

The rest of the trip was fantastic from there. Eventually the pair were able to go down to the beach, though it wasn't nearly as enjoyable as the hotel room for Laxus. All in all though, it was great and he couldn't wait to do it again.

"Let's not make it ten months next time, huh?" he suggested as she snuggled up to him that last night.

"Definitely."

Things were so good too that Laxus wasn't even mad when they returned back home to find that Elfman and Evergreen had blown off cleaning the attic, Bickslow and Lisanna had found better uses of their time, such as going over to Laxus' unoccupied apartment and stealing a bunch of his liquor to get wasted together (that would teach him to call her a kid) and also managing to squeeze a date in there or something, Laxus wasn't too sure, and even though that last part (or any of them) didn't sound great, he gave his blessing, while poor Freed got stuck with attic duty.

"What have you done?" Mira shrieked when she found it. Because she, however, was not okay. With any of that. At all. But especially what Freed did. "Where is all my stuff?"

"Laxus told me to clean the attic." Freed had taken them up to it and, standing in the center of the completely cleared out space, he put his hands on his hips and grinned. "So I took it all to the dump."

"You what?"

"Oh no." Laxus groaned.

"That is what cleaning is," the letter mage reasoned. "Yes?"

"I wanted it organized! Not gone!"

"Hmmm. Perhaps you should have been more clear."

And that was how Laxus got to spend his day home after vacation. Trying to keep the she-devil from killing Freed. It wasn't easy. But getting that beach trip had made it worth it.

It felt nice, really, to be loved. Until he went home and found that being loved apparently meant that the person you loved's little sister was allowed to just come into your apartment and raid it with her date who was supposed to be your treasured and truest bodyguard for liquor. He'd expected a bottle or two. Not eight. And then it was Mirajane holding Laxus back and trying to protect poor (not so) innocent Lisanna.

Eventually he'd grin about it and she would giggle. The whole thing. Not then, of course, but eventually. Say...ten months. Give or take.


End file.
